Mucha Mucha mucha

August 22, 2014

I had some time on my hands for the first time all week. I am taking tomorrow off of work so that I can make the long trek up the 5 freeway for the annual rafting trip. Every year I participate in Raft 4 Life, a charity event where the proceeds go to fund research for Angiosarcoma (the type of cancer I had). Since I wont have any free time this weekend to draw mermaids, this will be my last post for the week. I think it’s only appropriate to take the weekend off! Enjoy!

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2 Comments

Hi, I’m Paul Michael from cleveland ohio. I just graduated from the cleveland Institute of art with a degree in illustration and minor of animation. I am trying to get a job for Disney. I was wondering if you could check out my sites and maybe give me some pointers of things to work on in presenting myself to companies such as the one you work for. I would really appreciate the advice. I hope I have what it takes. Thanks so much for your time!!

Hi Paul! Thanks for taking the time to comment! Your links were broken in your message so I had to hunt you down. I hope your last name starts with a Z, because that is what I am commenting on! From what I can see you have a strong sense of design and are great with light! That’s awesome. I think your work is lovely and I am now following it from my tumblr site! I am not in Disney animation. I work at Imagineering, which is the division of Disney that designs themeparks, rides and attractions. I mostly deal with real world design and concept, and as a result my design sense is very much based in attainable realism. I don’t know if what I have to say to you will be helpful in the field of animation, but I do have many many friends in that field.

Apply for internships. They are sometimes unpaid and sometimes very menial, but they are a way in. I know SO many people that have been hired from doing an internship in animation. Sometimes you don’t always end up exactly where you want to be in animation on the first try. Therefore, you can ALWAYS apply to these giant companies like Dreamworks, Blue Sky, Pixar and Disney. But remember there are smaller studios too, like Laika and TV animation. You can most definitely work your way up from there if Disney is your end goal. The animation community is surprisingly small- and Visual Development (presumably where you might end up) is even smaller. Be kind to everyone and don’t be afraid to fail. People in this industry are generally a very friendly bunch. A lot of them teach and are willing to share knowledge as well. They might not be able to get you jobs per-se, but if they get to know your work, you will definitely be on radar.

It may also seem like your portfolio goes into a black hole when you apply to Disney, but I assure you it does not. If you’re not the right fit for a particular project it doesn’t mean your work isn’t appreciated or flagged by directors for future projects. The animation industry is hard work, there is a ton of competition by brilliant artists, so march to the beat of your own drum and be unique.

I hope that helps! This is what I consistently hear friends that all work in Animation say in conversation.